*from www.bloomberg.com, Mar. 19, 2013 (To view original article click here.)
Take Away #1: Cyprus’s parliament rejected an unprecedented levy on bank deposits.
Key Facts and Figures:
- This deals a blow to European plans to force savers to shoulder part of the country’s bailout in a standoff that risks renewed tumult in the euro area.
- Cypriot legislators voted 36 against the proposal with none in favor in a show of hands today.
- There were 19 abstentions.
Take Away #2: The deal hammered out by euro-area finance chiefs at the weekend, had sought to raise funds by drawing from Cyprus bank accounts in return for international aid.
Key Facts and Figures:
- The deal sought to raise 5.8 billion euros ($7.5 billion) from Cyprus bank accounts in return for 10 billion euros in international aid.
Take Away #3: European officials stress that the Cyprus situation is unique and that Cyprus must contribute to its own bailout.
Key Facts and Figures:
- Stocks dropped and the euro fell to a three-month low against the dollar at the prospect of impasse in Cyprus.
- The Mediterranean island nation accounts for less than half a percent of the 17-nation euro economy.
Take Away #4: There is no precedent for what would happen if Cyprus rejects the conditions.
Key Facts and Figures:
- “Our best guess is that Europe would give Cyprus a brief and final chance to rethink and vote,” said chief economist at Berenberg Bank in London, Holger Schmieding.
*To view original article from www.bloomberg.com click here.